MARIE CURIE ASSOCIATION

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MARIE CURIE ASSOCIATION

• 9a Magura Street, Plovdiv 4000,
• tel./fax[phone]
• Email plovdiv_at_marie-curie-bg.org
• 8 Baba Nedelia,1floor, ap.1,Sofia 1000
• Tel./fax[phone]
• Emailsofia_at_marie-curie-bg.org

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MARIE CURIE IS

• NGO
• Unprofitable
• Disadvantaged people
• Disabled people

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PROJECT

• EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
• MENTORING AND TRAINING FOR PEOPLE WITH
  DISABILITIES AND EMPLOYERS
• BG/01/B/F/PP-132126
• LEONARDO DA VINCI PILOT PROJECT

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ABOUT THE PROJECT

• Duration of 24 months
• BULGARIA
• GREECE
• GREAT BRITAIN

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PARTNERS

• 3 Universities in each country
• 3 organizations representing the employers in
  each country
• 
  
• 2 NGOs representing disabled people

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TARGET GROUPS

• People with disabilities (final-year students in
  vocational, further or higher education and
  unemployed former students) who wished to gain
  support, work experience and advanced practical
  knowledge of their chosen employment sector in
  order to obtain employment at a professional
  level.
• Employers in the service sector
• Policy makers, intermediaries

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PROJECTS OBJECTIVES

• To provide disabled people with work experience
  in the target sector as well as provide them
  with self-confidence and training in
  professional-level jobs.
• To improve employers awareness of disabled
  peoples abilities and needs.
• To develop networks of employers with disabled
  employees, or who are interested in doing so.
• To reduce the unemployment rate of disabled
  people and so lessen the social burden.

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PRODUCTS

• Establishment of 6 months 'mentoring system,
  linking disabled people to non-disabled people
  who are working for relevant employers (the
  mentors).
• Establish a network of employers sharing their
  experience of employing disabled people and
  identify the transferable principles of such
  networks
• Training materials for both

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• METHODOLOGY OF MENTORING
• Identification of potential piloters-mentees by
  the University partners
• Identification of potential mentors by the
  employers organizations
• Development of training materials for both
  mentees and mentors based on existing UK
  resources
• Recruitment of mentees according to the fixed
  criteria
• Application forms completed by both mentees and
  mentors
• Recruitment of mentees according to the fixed
  criteria

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MENTEES MENTORS MATCHING BASED ON MENTEES
REQUIREMENTS

• Occupation
• Branch of the workplace
• Experience
• Sex
• Age
• Geographical position
• Disability

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MENTORING SCHEME

• Psychological tests completed by potential
  mentees
• Interviews with the mentees conducted by
  psychologist
• Re-recruitment of mentors
• Mentees-mentors matching
• 21couples in Bulgaria, 6 in Greece and 12 in UK
• 2 couples quitted
• 3 mentees requested second matching (a new
  mentor)
• 2 of them kept on seeing 2 mentors
• 6 months duration of the mentoring process

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MENTORING ROCESS

• HOW OFTEN?
• Every week
• Twice a week
• Every day
• HOW LONG?
• 2 hours
• Half a day
• 2 weeks
• WHERE?
• Work premises
• Mentors office

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DISABILITIES

• Any kind of sensory and mobility disability
• Wheelchair users
• Visually impaired
• Acoustically impaired with speaking difficulties
• Handicapped (upper and down limbs)
• Diabetes
• Epilepsy
• People who have had cancer
• No mental health problems

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QUALITY RESULTS AND EVALUATION

• 97 of the mentors say that they changed their
  attitude (improve it) during the mentoring scheme
• 98 of the mentors declare that they would
  participate again
• Mentees share the opinion that they benefited in
  the following
• More self-confident
• More empowered
• Acquired new vocational skills
• Social contacts

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QUANTITY RESUTS

• 19 couples in Bulgaria (7 employed)
• Special training How to search for a job
• 6 couples in Greece (1 employed)
• 12 couples in UK

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EMPLOYERS NETWORKS OF DISABILITY

• UK 44 members
• BG 72 members
• GR- 20 members
• Workshops and seminars
• Leaflets and brochures
• Posters
• Websites with information about relevant
  legislation

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SUSTAINABILITY

• Implemented as a permanent service with the
  participating universities
• Database of mentees (people with disabilities)
• Database of mentors (employers)
• Continuing process NGOs are the intermediaries
• Employers network keeps on functioning

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TRAINING MATERIALS

• Websites
• Paper-based version
• CD ROMs with sign language and screen reader
  interpretation
• Braille version
• Audio-video cassettes
• Sign language interpretation
• Screen reader interpretation

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NATIONAL WEBSITES

• http//www.marie-curie-bg.org/mentoring (BG)
• http//www.rhodes.aegean.gr/mentoring (GR)
• http//www.disabilityserve.com/services/leonardo-d
  a-vinci-programme/index.htm (UK)

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THANK YOU.